All Along The Watchtower
Original Song by Bob Dylan
"There must be some way out of here", said the joker to the thief.
"There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth.
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth."
"No reason to get excited", the thief he kindly spoke.
"There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we've been through that, and this is not our fate.
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late."
All along the watchtower, princes kept the view.
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too.
Outside in the distance a wildcat did growl.
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.
See also: Fr. Barron on Bob Dylan
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"All Along the Watchtower" is a song written and recorded by singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It initially appeared on his album John Wesley Harding. It has been covered by other artists in different genres, most notably by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. There exists much speculation as to what the song is actually about. Dylan wrote "All Along the Watchtower" along with the other songs on John Wesley Harding over the year or so following his motorcycle accident in the summer of 1966. His recuperation from the accident, which occurred near his home in Woodstock, New York, enabled Dylan to escape the excesses of touring and make a dramatic turnaround in his lifestyle. With one child born in early 1966 and another in mid-1967, he settled into family life and even took a growing interest in the Bible, as reflected in the album's Biblical allusions, particularly in songs such as "All Along the Watchtower", "Dear Landlord", "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine" and "The Wicked Messenger".
